


Treachery in the Shoe Department

by CoramDeo



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: But I'm pretty sure I nailed it, Determination (Undertale), Fanfiction of Fanfiction, Fluff, Gen, Halloween Costumes, Intrigue, Magic, More like fanfiction of partially-read fanfiction, Nonsense, Not Serious, Post-Endgame, Post-Undertale Pacifist Route, Quilted magic, Shoe-based torture, Silly, Sneakery, Three words that bring tears to any child, Wal-Mart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2019-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-26 00:21:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,394
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21764431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CoramDeo/pseuds/CoramDeo
Summary: Frisk has been captured by the evil wizards of Wal-Mart, who are using their dark arts to revive human magic in order to create chaos, probably.  Since Frisk's Determination is greater than theirs, and she won't give it to them even though they asked nicely, they are forced to resort to more barbaric methods.  Can Frisk's friends get to the store, find some really fetching costumes for disguises, and save her before the story runs out of chapters?
Comments: 14
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TakaiWolf](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TakaiWolf/gifts).
  * Inspired by [PATCHWORK SOUL](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20080444) by [TakaiWolf](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TakaiWolf/pseuds/TakaiWolf). 



> This story is a spinoff of "[Patchwork Soul](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20080444/chapters/47558302)" starting around chapter 30, and is heartily not endorsed by the author of that fine story, [TakaiWolf](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TakaiWolf/pseuds/TakaiWolf). Don't blame her for any of the nonsense that follows.
> 
> The story of how this story came to be is silly. I was on the [Fanfic Paradise](https://discord.gg/Nwwwe4) chatting about "[Patchwork Soul](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20080444/chapters/47558302)", which I am still in the process of reading. Questions arose about whether Determination could be bottled and, if so, would it be in stock at Wal-Mart. _That_ led the to question of wizards employed at Wal-Mart, and _that_ led to the possibility of their sinister perfidy, reviving human magic in order to... do something bad. And a few hours later, this travesty came into existence.

Technically the store was open 24 hours a day. In reality, the Mountebottsville Wal-Mart was pretty much a ghost town at 3:00am, with only a few haggard shoppers slumping around the store looking for sleep aids or making late-night purchases of Bisquick for the morning. And absolutely nobody visited the shoe department at that hour. The sinister third-shift employees of Wal-Mart knew that well. The eight of them gathered there among the women’s boots and fur-lined slippers had no fear of discovery. And even if the young purple-and-blue-clad girl they held imprisoned there cried out, her voice and their mocking laughter would not draw any attention from the weary shoppers who just wanted to find the 100% pure maple syrup their wife asked them to pick up so they could go home, and why are they only finding Mrs. Butterworth’s? 

Frisk looked with fear at the fell wizards who held her, each of whom wore a black skullcap and a long, red-trimmed black velvet robe, over which was a bright blue zippered vest. Too late, the monsters of the Underground had discovered that human magic was being revived. For years, unbeknownst to them, magical energy had been flowing from the CORE down to Mountebottsville, where the dark lords of the local Wal-Mart had found a way to collect it, harness it, and study it. And with much patience, in between restocking bananas and collecting carts from the parking lot, the sorcerers of Wal-Mart had relearned the dark secrets of magic long since vanished from the world of men. 

Their power had grown great – great enough almost to bend time itself. Only one obstacle stood in their way: the girl. The girl with enough determination to anchor the timeline of the world. The girl who prevented them from becoming Time Lords just like in Doctor Who, season 11 of which was on sale for $11.99 in Electronics. Persuasion had failed with the girl. Even destroying her would do no good, for the universe itself would bend in sympathy around her and reset her to a safer point back in time. 

There was only one other option. The determination had to be extracted from her by force. 

“Brother Cumaldaner,” said one of the wizards, “how long until our master joins us?” 

“Patience, brother,” replied a tall man, whose first name was “Mike” according to the tag pinned to his vest. “He will join us at the moment of his choosing, when all is ready.” Turning to another wizard he said “Brother Undómo, is everything prepared?” 

“Yes, brother Cumaldaner!" replied the short wizard ("Ted"). "The DT extraction machine is ready in the tire center! A benighted _fool_ is over there at the moment trying to find a battery for his Subaru, but once he leaves, I shall lock the door and hang a “maintenance” sign on it, and then we will have the privacy we need. No one will hear the screams!” He cackled at the girl, who shrunk back. 

**_“YOU FOOLS!”_**

A plume of white smoke erupted as a heavy door behind them swung open. 

With a gasp, all eight mages sank to their knees and lowered their heads. Frisk’s captor pulled her down to the ground as well. There, emerging from the magical smoke that poured out of the Family Restroom, was a tall, thin man. His clothing was the same as the other wizards now kneeling at his feet, though his vest was bright yellow. His face was angry. 

“ _Hail thee, lord district manager!”_ intoned the mages, their faces to the floor. 

“Rise, fools! And curse you for your stupidity! Do you not know that the DT Extraction machine is non-functional? It cannot be used against the girl!” 

The short wizard remained cowering on the floor in fear. “B-b-but my lord, I thought that our magic was sufficient to repair the-“ 

“It was _not!_ Rise, you idiots!” The men awkwardly got back to their feet. Frisk was pulled to stand upright. The district manager stared at her coldly. 

“As great as our magic is, we are still lacking a vital component for the Extractor. And it cannot-“, he almost choked on the words, “-it cannot be found at this location.” 

“Your excellency, where can we find... uh, where-“, began one hapless wizard before being fixed with a withering gaze by the dark lord in front of him. Wisely he snapped his mouth shut. 

“The part we need for the machine can only be found from the thaumatologists of… of that… _other store_. Curse them for their superior supply chain! Curse them!” He raised his fist in anger and discharged a burst of fire, causing Frisk to duck in fear. The sprinkler system started up. 

_“TARGET of hatred! TARGET of destruction!”_ chanted the other eight wizards as they began to get wet. 

With an angry wave of magic, the dark lord shut the sprinklers off. 

“However,” he said more calmly, “there are still other means available to us.” Again, he fixed Frisk with a cold, cruel smile. “What cannot be taken by force can still be offered as a gift. The girl can be… _persuaded_ to give us the Determination she possesses. His lips curled backwards to reveal cruel, white teeth that had been brushed well with Colgate Max Fresh Whitening. Frisk shrank back against the shelves. 

“Now, my dear,” he purred as he walked over to her. Frisk shook in terror, but the iron grip of the wizard who held her arm only tightened. “I know you have already been asked politely by my servants here. But the time for _politeness_ has ended. You are going to give me what I want, and you’re going to do it _now._ Because if you do not… do you know what is going to happen to you?” 

He knelt down in front of Frisk. In spite of her terror, a deep well of courage bubbled up within her. “I don’t care! Nothing you can say or do to me will make me give up! You’ll never get what you want!” 

The wizard’s cruel smile grew wider. “Oh, but my dear… is it possible you haven’t noticed where you are? Look around you, Frisk,” he said with a sweeping gesture. “What do you see?” 

Frisk took a halting look at the shelves around her. A shadow of doubt began to cloud her face. The other mages were grinning now. 

“That’s right, my dear – you are in the _shoe department_. And if you don’t give me what I want right now…” The evil wizard fixed his cold eyes on her. “I’m going to make you _try on a pair of shoes._ ” 

A look of horror came into Frisk’s face. 

“And then I’m going to have you walk back and forth while we look at them and see what we think! And I’ll pinch the end of the shoes to see where your toes are. And then I will make you walk around some more. And _then_ Frisk... then I will have you try on _another pair!_ ” All of the wizards were laughing now. “And then another pair, and another pair after that! You will have to try on _so many shoes,_ Frisk. You will do it for _hours!”_

Tears were streaming down Frisk’s face. “No! Please-I hate shopping for shoes!” 

“Everyone does!” roared the wizard manager. His voiced dropped as he leered into Frisk’s face. “So, it’s your choice, my dear.Give me the Determination – or try on every girl’s size 3 shoe in this department!” He threw back his head in malevolent laughter. Frisk sank to the ground weeping, as the wizards cackled around her. 

But fortunately, Frisk was not alone. 


	2. Chapter 2

“just another minute… almost got it…” 

The four figures ducking behind the potted plants at the Wal-Mart side entrance had met with a good deal of fortune. First, the employee assigned to watch the cameras pointed at the door was at that very moment gleefully handing a tearful Frisk a pair of L.O.L Surprise! Hi-Top sneakers, and was thus unaware of the infiltration at the Garden Center. Second, although the doors could only be unlocked from the inside, one of their party had discovered a useful shortcut that put him on the other side of the door. Third, the same party member had spent a bit of time learning basic lockpicking for just such an occasion. At the moment he was maneuvering two tiny blue bones within the lock mechanism of the door. 

“ah, there we go!” 

With a click and a twist, the lock opened, and the two bones disappeared. Sans slid the doors open so Papyrus, Undyne, Toriel, and Asriel could sneak through. The rest of their team were parked nearby in a van that Papyrus had somehow been able to acquire. (“I JUST ASKED THEM VERY POLITELY, AND THEY GAVE IT TO ME! OH, AND I ALSO GAVE THEM SEVERAL HUNDRED GOLD COINS THAT WERE JUST TAKING UP SPACE IN A JAR AT HOME!”) Asgore had wanted to come, but had graciously accepted the fact that having his horns, and possibly entire head, jut over the top of the aisles might have ruin the element of stealth. Instead, he remained with Dr. Alphys, who had setup an elaborate communication and hacking lab in the back of the van that would have put The A-Team to shame. (“The Complete Collection”, on sale for $68.99 in Electronics.) 

Sans had a finger to his ear canal, where a tiny earpiece was taped on. “Dry Bones to Cera” he muttered softly. “we’re in. commencing deal hunting.” 

“G-great!” came a voice through everyone’s earpieces. “Ok, the sensors are picking up h-heavy concentrations of human magic at the back of the store, and also a large grouping of hu-humans there as well. Most of them are standing still, b-but one of them is just walking back and forth repeatedly. Switching to de-determination scanners – whoa! DT readings are spiking heavily back there, but the DT in the w-walking figure is off the charts. T-t-that’s gotta be her!” 

“roger, Cera, see if you can find a way to make a distraction, and wait for my signal.” 

“Sure thing, Sans! Uh! Uh, I-I-I mean, uh, Dry Bones!” 

“ok, let’s start sneaking our way to the back. looks like nobody’s buying lightbulbs or stereo speakers tonight, so we should be clear.” 

“Sans,” came a soft voice that was nonetheless used to carrying authority, “I think it would be better if all of us were to try to find some way to disguise ourselves first. We do not want to cause any alarm among the humans who are shopping here.” 

“SANS, I THINK THE QUEEN IS CORRECT! YOU AND I ESPECIALLY MAY PRODUCE UNFORTUNATE OUTBURSTS IN ANYONE WHO SEES US, AS YOU MAY RECALL FROM A FEW DAYS AGO WHEN WE VISITED THE HAUNTED FOREST EXHIBIT!” 

“heh – yeah, I think you two are right.” 

“Wait a minute!”, Undyne said, snapping her fingers. “The Haunted Forest! I totally forgot that Halloween was two months away, which means that human stores are already carrying Christmas junk, but also Halloween costumes! I’ll bet those might work.” 

“Yeah, and look!” pointed Asriel with excitement. “They're right over there!” 

The five of them turned to where he was pointing. Just a few shelves away, rows of costumes of were hanging next to plastic pumpkins and bags of Snickers and Almond Joys (for people who loved children) and bags of Jolly Ranchers and Bit-O-Honeys (for terrible people). 

“Good job, dear!” Toriel beamed. “Ok, everyone sneak over and find a costume.” 

As the furtive group approached the costumes, Sans’ face broke out into a grin. “hey, bro... it looks like you may have been worried for nothing.” Among the costumes were dozens of Marvel movie characters… and a set of skeleton costumes. 

Papyrus’ eyes lit up, and his hands went to his cheeks. “WOWIE! YOU'RE RIGHT BROTHER! THIS WILL BE EASIER THAN I THOUGHT!” 

Five minutes later, a tall Captain America and rather stumpy Iron Man slunk out of sight to wait for their friends. 

A minute later they were joined by Undyne. “All right, punks! Let’s do this! NGAHHHH!” She pumped her fist in the air, then noticed the stares of the two skeletons. “What?”, she said. She fluffed out the sparkly pink dress that covered her shirt and blue jeans, and carefully adjusted her crown. “WHAT? What are you guys staring at??” 

Papyrus coughed. “UM... NOTHING! NOTHING AT ALL, ROYAL GUARD LEADER! YOUR COSTUME IS… UM… VERY PINK ON YOU!” 

“Thanks, punk! I think I’ll have to leave the magic wand behind though.” She placed the star wand on the shelf and reached behind her back to adjust her wings. 

Asriel rejoined the group, followed a moment later by his mother. "Sorry!" she said as she hurried over. "I was just leaving a few coins by the cash register near the gardening equipment. I hope an employee finds them later!" 

"good thinking, tori. right on the _money_." Sans said with a wink. "and hey, nice threads."

The queen’s robe was now covered by a white button-up lab coat. The belt that was buckled around her waist held a spiky orange-yellow plastic tail in place, which draped down under the coat and dragged along the floor behind her. “I found a section of costumes that are based on video games!” she said happily. “I do not know which game this is from, but it was the only thing I could find that would fit me.” 

“AN EXCELLENT CHOICE, YOUR HIGHNESS”, Papyrus said approvingly. “BUT PRINCE ASRIEL, WERE YOU UNABLE TO FIND ANYTHING IN YOUR SIZE?” 

The mere fact that the prince of monsters was standing there at all was nothing short of a miracle, a fact that was evidenced by his clothing. To be sure there was nothing unusual about his green-and-yellow shirt or blue jeans. Rather it was the cloak he wore around his shoulders, a riotous burst of motley colors. It was a precious gift that had been given to Asriel by all the monsters of the Underground. To restore his soul to him, they had all contributed to a magical patchwork quilt, which Toriel had fashioned into the hooded cloak which he now wore. The hood hung down against his back. 

“Don’t worry, Papyrus – I don’t need a costume! I can be the stealthiest one of us all, as long as someone will carry me!” And with that, Asriel reached back and flipped the hood of the cloak onto his head. There was a puff of smoke as the magical power of the patchwork cloak was temporarily interrupted. When it cleared, a small flowerpot sat on the floor, holding an excited-looking flower wearing a much smaller cloak. A vine popped out of the soil to brush the hood back a little from its eyes. 

“Ok, _now_ I’m ready! Can you carry me, Papyrus?” 

“OF COURSE, MINI-ASRIEL! IT WILL BE MY HONOR!” 

“ok, so”, Sans looked around, “if we go this way, we should be able to get to the back of the store unnoticed.” 

“H-HEY, YOU GUYS! I W-WAS ABLE TO HACK INTO THE S-STORE’S MAIN COMPUTER SYSTEM,” crackled the loudspeakers throughout the store. “IT W-WAS PRETTY EASY, THEY W-WERE STILL RUNNING WINDOWS XP SERVICE PACK 2! CAN YOU BELIEVE THEY NEVER B-BOTHERED PATCHIN-WHAT?” 

Undyne was loudly whispering something into her microphone. 

“OH! OH! UM-UM-UH-I-I MEAN, T-THAT’S WHAT YOU’LL BE ABLE TO SAY IF Y-YOU BUY THE NEW, UH, ROYAL SCIENTIST SPY LAB KIT! UH, NOW AVAILABLE IN THE ELECTRONICS DEPARTMENT FOR ONLY 25G! YES, IT WILL...SORRY, WHAT WAS THAT, SIRE?” There was a muffled voice in the background “OH-OH-D-DOLLARS! YES! ONLY 25 DOLLARS! OH-“ The speakers mercifully crackled to silence. 

“yeah, so... anyway,” Sans said with a shrug, “I think we can get back there undetected.” 

“Hey, shut up you guys” hissed Undyne. “Did you hear that?” 

From the back of the store, a burst of cruel laughter could be heard. Toriel raised her hands to her mouth. 

“My poor child! We must go immediately!” 

“alright, follow me, and stay down,” Sans ordered. 

The monsters crept through the car audio section, seldom populated because people don’t buy car radios from Wal-Mart, then through the sports department. As they approached the shoe section, they could hear the sounds of a girl weeping, along with the voice of her tormentor. 

“Well, my darling, it looks like these "Disney Frozen 2 Anna Combat Boots" fit you pretty well. And now I think it's time for us to look for... some _dress shoes!"_ Many other voices joined in the taunting laughter. Undyne balled up her fists. 

“Those _jerks!_ They’re making her try on shoes over and over! What kind of savages are they?” 

Flowey scowled. “That is so mean! Maybe those guys need to learn how to be _friendly!”_ A few stray white pellets formed in the air around him. 

“No, dear, no magic!” His mother shook her head at him. 

The monsters crept closer through the toy department until they were on the opposite side of the shelf. Now the only thing that separated them from the evil magicians was a row of Polly Pocket Dance Par-taay! playsets. The voice of a young girl drifted over to them. Sans hunkered down at the end of the aisle and risked peeking around. 

“Please... could I please stop trying on shoes?” the girl said in a broken voice. “Could I just please go look at the toys for a few minutes? I’ll come back, I promise!” 

“Oh, that would be _fun_ , wouldn’t it, my dear?” came an ugly voice. “The toy section is right over there. But I’m afraid I can’t let you go over there because,“ he leaned in close, “we’re not _buying any toys today.”_

Once again the wizards laughed. Frisk grew more desperate. “But I just want to _look!_ We don’t have to buy anything! Can’t I just see if they have the Lego Friends Cupcake Café? I-I just want to look at it!" 

“ _No!_ But I’ll tell you what, Frisk. There _are_ other things we can get for you." 

Frisk’s face became fearful as a wicked smile crept across the yellow-vested wizard’s face. 

“Perhaps you might like a nice pencil set?” 

Frisk look confused for a moment. Then a look of dawning horror appeared on her face. “No… oh no…” 

“Or how about some 3-subject notebooks? And maybe some folders as well? Do you need a lunch bag, too?” 

Frisk was on the floor, scrambling backwards, face filled with terror. “No! Please, please no, it can’t be-“ 

“OH, but it IS, Frisk! It’s that wonderful time of year again! It’s time for you to go-“ 

The warlock raised his hands and lightning crackled between his hands. 

“BACK TO SCHOOL!” 

The frenzied laughter and the wailing from Frisk filled the area, causing a shopper who was just about to ask Ted whether the store had any micro-USB cables to back away and go find someone else. 

“How could they?!” Undyne’s fury was leaving dents in the shelf she was holding onto. “How could they do that to a kid?” 

“I do not see the problem,” Toriel said indignantly. “What is wrong with school? I think school is a delightful-“ 

“ ** _THAT’S IT_**!” Flowey whisper-yelled. ““Nobody does that to my sister! We’ve gotta do something right now!” 

“But my child, Alphys has not yet created a distraction!” 

“ **I’ll** be the distraction, mom. Papyrus, get ready to throw me over the shelf!” 

“AS YOU WISH, MY PRINCE!” Papyrus pulled his arm back. 

“uh, hey asriel, buddy, what are-“ 

“Everyone attack on the count of three, _onetwothree,go,go,go!_ ” And as the monsters surged forward and the flowerpot sailed over the boxes of PAW Patrol slippers, Flowey snapped his head backwards to shake his hood off. 

An instant later, the human mages were stunned by the sudden invasion of two misshapen superheroes, a regal dinosaur scientist with burning paws, and a snarling pink fish princess brandishing a spear. But that was nothing compared to the terror they felt, and the cry of joy that broke from Frisk’s throat, when an explosion of light and smoke burst upon them as a furry monster child wielding two chaos sabers, his quilted cloak spread out behind him gloriously, came flying over the shelf yelling “ ** _GET AWAY FROM MY SISTER!_** _”_

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you think, and thanks for reading! And seriously, check out "[Patchwork Soul](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20080444/chapters/47558302)". Highest hugs-to-words ratio of any Undertale story!


End file.
